


I Promise

by nicetomeetmew



Series: The Wild Lost in Darkness [1]
Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Big Brother Twi, Blood and Violence, Brotherly Angst, Dreams and Nightmares, Gen, I forgot to mention Roolie I'm sorry, Implied Kidnapping, Prophetic Visions, Twilight's going to have a hernia, Wild is missing, it gets a bit graphic in chapter 2 oops, let Wind hype himself 2k20, not beta read we die like heroes, now rated mature because uhhh things happened in chapter 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:27:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24982327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nicetomeetmew/pseuds/nicetomeetmew
Summary: He knew that source of that scream. And he knew that he would not have heard it unless something was terribly, terribly wrong.Or: what if Wild doesn't willingly leave the group for the events of Breath of the Wild 2?
Relationships: Twilight & Wild (Linked Universe)
Series: The Wild Lost in Darkness [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1813396
Comments: 35
Kudos: 310





	1. Where Are You?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MajesticGaZell](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MajesticGaZell/gifts).



> So I wrote this a while back and buried it on my laptop and only found again recently. And I thought "hey... that's actually not a pile of crap!" So I made the snap decision to post it here. And I am gifting this to my wonderful friend Gazell, who is always willing to look at my writing and gives me the courage to share my stuff, including this. Thank you, you wonderful bean <3

_Throughout time, evil has always hidden beneath the kingdom of Hyrule, forever ready to strike and bring about destruction and darkness. However, there have always been two who stood up to that darkness no matter what form it took. The princess with the blood of the goddess and the boy with the spirit of the hero. Whether it be the Chosen Hero, the legendary Hero of Time, or the fearless Hero of Winds who ventured bravely into the Great Sea to-_

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!”

Wind stopped in the middle of his grand monologue, looking down in annoyance at Legend from his spot on a tree stump.

“What?”

“You can’t use your role as story-teller to hype yourself up,” Legend said, polishing his mirror shield.

“I was not!” Wind huffed. “I mentioned the legendary Hero of Time, didn’t I?”

Eyes turned to Time, who was in the middle of taking off his heavy armor and not looking particularly invested in this discussion.

“I’m flattered.”

Satisfied, Wind turned back to the red-clad hero. “See? And I mentioned Sky.” He gestured towards the man in question who was leaning against a tree, whittling away, completely oblivious.

Four snorted. “I don’t think he even realized you were telling a story.”

Laughter rippled around the camp, where the chosen heroes were all settling in for the night, aside from Wild who had wandered off at some point, much to Twilight’s irritation. Lately, the others had noticed that Wild had made a habit of disappearing, usually without anyone noticing. After the first few times, most of the heroes had decided to leave him to it, since he usually returned within a few hours without injury (excluding a few scratches he claimed to have gotten from tree-climbing). Plus, he usually worked a patrol into it, so he was also being helpful.

Twilight, however, was less than enthusiastic about letting his cub wander around in unknown territory. If there was anything that he had learned from his time around Wild it was that, while he often preferred to be alone, there was absolutely no telling what kind of trouble he could get himself into. It also didn’t help that he had refused to tell him why he had taken up this seemingly new habit.

Twilight sighed, poking at the flames of their campfire with a stick. What he would give to know what was going through Wild’s head sometimes. He started slightly as a hand came down onto his shoulder. He looked up to see that Time had sat down beside him. His mentor gave him a small, reassuring smile. Twilight smiled back, shaking his head.

“Where’s Wild? I’m getting hungry.” Wind said with a loud sigh, now having abandoned his storytelling and sitting next to Warriors, draped in the older hero’s scarf.

Twilight frowned. The problem with Wild leaving without anyone noticing was that no one knew exactly when he left. He was never usually gone for more than a couple of hours but…

“Does anyone remember when he left?” Time asked, as though reading his thoughts. A chorus of “no’s” went around the group. Legend scoffed.

“He’s probably stuck in a tree again.”

Twilight shot him a glare.

“What?” Legend said, raising his hands in defense. “Would you be surprised if he was?”

“Maybe some of us should go look for him.” Hyrule said, looking out into the trees.

“Why? So, he can get all huffy about us looking out for hi- HEY!” Legend cried out as Warrior cuffed him across the head.

“I’m sure he’s fine. It’s not like this is the first time.”

A murmur of agreement went around, and Twilight felt his shoulders droop. He knew that in some ways the others were right – Wild had always been fine before and he did hate when the other’s looked for him before. But he still couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

And that’s when they heard it. A scream. A loud, desperate scream that sounded horribly familiar. The 8 heroes froze in silent horror as the yell reverberated around the forest. Before anyone could say anything, Twilight jumped up and shot into the trees.

“Pup, wait!” Time called after him. But he didn’t listen. He knew that source of that scream. And he knew that he would not have heard it unless something was terribly, _terribly_ wrong. As soon as he felt he was a safe distance away, he shifted. The trees blurred past him as his paws tore through the forest floor, running in the direction of the scream. He slowed down slightly, sniffing the air. _There._ Somewhere to his left. He took off again, his heightened senses dimly aware that he was being followed, presumably by Time.

Not long had passed before he came to a clearing. He skidded to a halt, panting heavily. He sniffed at the ground. He could smell him but… he looked around the empty clearing. Wild’s scent ended in the exact spot he was standing.

“Twilight!”

He turned to see Time, Four and Legend running up to him. He looked questioningly behind them, silently asking if the others were following them. Time seemed to understand, shaking his head. Satisfied, Twilight shifted back to his Hylian form.

“He was here,” he said, continuing to look around the clearing. “But his scent ends right about here and I don’t-”

He let his voice trail off as Four bent down, picking something up from the grass.

“Is this…?” He turned back to the older heroes holding out his hand. In it he was holding a scrap of black cloth. Twilight reached out to take it, trying to hide the fact that his own hands were shaking. He didn’t need his wolf senses to know where it had come from. It was soft, familiar, and smelled of the forest itself.

“It’s from his cloak,” he said quietly. He felt Time beside him, although he didn’t feel as comforted by his presence as he usually did. The elder hero crouched down next to Four, examining the grass.

“Look at this.” He was pointing at a patch of grass which had been torn up forming what looked like…

“Those are drag marks,” Legend said, his usually cocky tone barely masking the worry in his voice.

Twilight clutched the piece of Wild’s cloak desperately to his chest.

_What happened to you, Cub? Where are you?_

* * *

“No.”

“ _No?”_

“You heard me, pup.” Time said, looking Twilight dead in the eye. “It’s late, it’s dark. Even for you as a wolf it is too dangerous. You don’t know what could be lurking.”

Twilight felt anger bubbling violently inside him. “I don’t _care_. Wild is _missing_ , old man. And if there is something out there, what’s to say that isn’t what’s responsible? If we wait till morning…” He trailed off, dreading to think of what could happen to his protégé.

Something flickered in Time’s eye, but he held firm.

“We’re going back to the camp.”

He strode off, Four and Legend trailing behind, not waiting for Twilight’s response.

* * *

The atmosphere of the camp now was a million miles away from what it had been before. After the heated argument between Twilight and Time in the clearing, they returned to the others, empty handed aside from the scrap of Wild’s cloak.

Now the heroes sat around the dying embers of the fire, picking at the measly dinner Sky had put together. Silence hung heavily around them.

Twilight was pacing. He strode around the area like a caged tiger, furious with Time for not letting him search the forest. Although, deep down, he knew that he wasn’t going to find Wild out there, he refused to believe it.

“Twi, can you stop?” Warriors asked, a weary look on his face. The pelt-clad hero halted, turning to see the others watching him with looks of worry and irritation.

Twilight looked down at the piece of black in his hands. He hadn’t let it go since Four had discovered it. It was the only thing he had that could help him find their lost hero.

“What should we do?” he asked finally, trying hard and failing to keep his voice strong.

“We wait till morning,” Time said firmly. “It’s a lost cause searching in the dark. We’ll settle in for the night and make a plan tomorrow.”

No one said anything. Twilight felt anger building up inside him, but he forced it down.

Time was right. He knew he was. And he hated that.

He sat down heavily next to his mentor, staring up the bright, shining moon. Closing his eyes, he sent out a silent message into the starry sky.

  
_I will find you, Cub. I promise._


	2. Ripped Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well what do ya know? I'm continuing this! After an overwhelmingly postive response (I mean seriously? 100 kudos? All your wonderful comments? I wasn't expecting anything like this and I appreciate so much, THANK YOU!) I decided that I really wanted to try continuing this. A proper sequel is in the works, hence this now being part of a series but for now... let's find out more about what happened to our favourite resident arsonist shall we?
> 
> TW: a pretty graphic violent scene (I got a bit carried away). It's only for one little bit but it was enough that I upped the rating of the work. Please be wary <3

Wild crept through the shadows, bowstring pulled taut as he scanned the trees. There was no movement aside from the gentle swaying of the branches. He breathed a sigh of relief, loosening his grip on his bow.

He glanced back in the direction of camp, debating whether or not he should head back. He just knew Twilight would be waiting for him with his (albeit not as effective as Time’s) glare of disappointment. A flash of guilt passed through him. As much as he was fond of adventuring, he hated sneaking off and keeping the reasons a secret from the others. He could practically _feel_ Twilight’s concern radiating off him whenever he got back. Each time, he would brush it off, saying he just wanted to stretch his legs, that he wanted to have some space for a minute or two.

He couldn’t tell them the truth. That for almost two weeks, strange dreams had plagued him. Visions that worried him. He didn’t know what was causing them, but all he knew for sure was that they weren’t memories. He almost felt like they were warning him of something. Something bad.

* * *

He was sitting with the others, laughing. The fire was merrily crackling away, the night was warm, and the atmosphere was perfect. He’d rarely felt so content.

And then, it came. He didn’t know what it was, but it was bad.

It started with a gate opening. Normally this wouldn’t come as a huge surprise to the heroes but this one was strange. Instead of the usual deep swirling purple, this one was red. Deep red with shades of pink. They would all look warily at it and that’s when it happened.  
  


The gate would shift, energy gathering in the center until long tendrils suddenly shot out, reaching for Wild. They would latch onto his ankle and yank him roughly towards the gate. He would panic and try to kick them off, but it was fruitless. They would burn through his clothes, digging into his skin, more and more wrapping around him as he struggled.

Then the others would try to help him. They would rush forward, weapons drawn, reaching for him and slashing the tendrils. And then the tendrils would strike back. The order was different in every dream, but the outcome was the same.

Last night it was Warriors first. He’d watched as the captain ran forward with a yell, sword raised and in the blink of an eye, he was rooted to the spot, eyes wide, with a gaping hole in his chest. Then he fell, lying on the forest floor, his eyes wide and glassy, seeing nothing.

Everyone stopped horrified and the tendrils continued to drag Wild closer and closer to the gate. He would claw at the ground and the tendrils would wrap around his hands. His friends would break from their stupor and attack again.

It had been Sky next. A tendril lashed out, slashing him from his shoulder to his hip. Wind was next, tendril wrapping around his neck, snapping it like a twig. Then Hyrule, who was thrown, crashing into a tree with such force it broke his spine. Legend was hit by multiple at once, trying to fight back until he fell, bleeding out from wounds all over his body. Four was pinned to a tree, a tendril in each limb and one right through the middle of him. Time held his own until one found its way around his neck, chocking the life out of him.

But if there was one thing that was always constant, it was the person who was last. Twilight.

He would hack and slash his way forward, grab hold of Wild’s tunic and desperately try to pull him back. Then the tendrils would latch on to him and Wild was forced to watch as the tore through his skin. Twilight would cry out in pain, but his grip held firm. Until the light faded from his eyes.

The Wild was finally dragged through the gate, his mentor’s blood staining his face, screaming for his brothers. As his vision went black, he would wake up, sweat pouring down his face and tears burning in his eyes. Every night.

* * *

Wild tried to shake the memory of the dream from his head. Only it wasn’t a dream. What kind of dream occurred every night and felt so… _real_?

No. Wild knew it was something more. He just knew it. And thankfully, after seeing the same nightmarish scene over and over again, there was something he had noticed. The position of the moon. In every dream, it was in the exact same position. And thanks to that one detail, Wild made a plan. If this was a premonition and he wasn’t there at the time it was supposed to come true, then it couldn’t happen. So that’s what he did. He snuck off and wandered the area they were in, carefully watching every nook and cranny ready to strike at any moment. He would not let anything happen to his brothers. That was a promise.

* * *

The moon shone brightly, illuminating the clearing. Wild didn’t take his eyes off it, counting every minute. He’d been gone for two hours and thirty-seven minutes. The moon was slowly creeping above the tips of the trees. As soon as it was clear in the sky, he would be safe to return.

Sighing wearily, he leaned back against a tree. Even after deeming the surrounding area safe, he couldn’t rest easily. Images of the broken bodies of the other hero’s kept flashing in his mind’s eye.

_I won’t let it happen. I_ won’t.

He repeated the mantra in his head, watching as slowly but surely, the moon rose past the point of the trees. Two hours and fifty-seven minutes. With a shaky breath, Wild pulled himself to his feet. He turned to back towards the camp when he heard something from behind him. He whipped back round and saw it. A gate. A red, swirling gate.

Fear crept up his back. It couldn’t be. There was no way. He wasn’t at the camp, how could this be here?

Terrified, he ran. A shrieking sound pierced through the air as something suddenly wrapped around his ankle. It yanked him back, knocking him hard to the floor. He looked back horrified, as bright red and black tendrils wrapped themselves up his leg.

_No, no, no, NO!_

He kicked and clawed desperately but the tendrils simply dug deeper into his skin. It burned, by Hylia it _burned._ He struggled, trying to nock an arrow but the arrow and his bow were suddenly snatched from his hands. He hurriedly reached back for his sword, only to find it also gone. He was defenseless. He was being dragged further and further away. His hands dug into the dirt, trying to find something, _anything_ to ground himself. It was useless. The tendrils swirled up his arms, roughly pulling them back. He whimpered pathetically. There was nothing he could do. _Nothing_.

Tears stung in his eyes as pain flared up all over his body. His vision was starting to darken. He’d lost. He was going to be torn away from his friends, his _family_ and he couldn’t stop it.

As darkness threatened to take him over completely, he did the one thing that he could. He opened his mouth and with every ounce of strength left inside him, he _screamed._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well there we go. I hope you enjoyed it heh. Please stay tuned for the sequel and thank you for reading!
> 
> As always, comments/constructive critism are always appreciated <3

**Author's Note:**

> Well there you go. I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> I could always try continuing this in some way... would anyone be interested in that? Hmm...
> 
> Anyway, thank you for reading! Feel free to leave a comment/contructive critisim, I always appreciate it :)


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